ALISO VIEJO, Calif. - Cal State LA has secured the regular-season championship, but tournament seeding and the final postseason berth remain unsettled entering the last day of CCAA men’s soccer season. (Thursday, Oct. 29)
Six teams have clinched spots in the seven-team tournament, leaving Menlo and Cal State Dominguez Hills battling for the remaining berth. Cal State Monterey Bay and Cal State San Bernardino have secured first-round home matches, while Cal State San Marcos and Cal Poly Pomona will meet to determine the third host. All six matches on Decision Day kick off at 2 p.m. Pacific.
The final standings will be determined by points per match, calculated by dividing conference points by conference matches played. The CCAA adopted the calculation after a weather-related cancellation created an unbalanced schedule. Teams receive three points for a victory and one point for a draw.
Cal State LA, Cal State Monterey Bay, Cal State San Bernardino, Cal State San Marcos, Cal Poly Pomona and UC Merced have secured tournament berths.
Menlo controls its path; Cal State Dominguez Hills needs a win and help
Menlo hosts Cal State Monterey Bay knowing a victory or draw will secure its place in the tournament.
The Oaks enter Thursday with 17 points in 11 conference matches. A draw would leave them at 1.500 PPM, matching the highest average Cal State Dominguez Hills can reach. Menlo holds the head-to-head advantage following its 3-1 victory over the Toros on Oct. 24. Even if UC Merced joins that tie at 1.500, Menlo would finish ahead of CSUDH.
A Menlo loss would leave the Oaks needing Cal State Dominguez Hills to draw or lose.
For the Toros, the path is straightforward: beat Cal State LA and have Menlo lose. That combination would send Dominguez Hills into the tournament as the No. 7 seed.
A draw or loss would eliminate the Toros. Menlo can finish as high as fifth if it wins and Cal Poly Pomona loses.
Cal State Monterey Bay seeks the No. 2 seed
Cal State Monterey Bay enters Thursday with 24 points in 11 matches and is assured of a first-round home match.
A victory or draw at Menlo would secure the No. 2 seed. A loss would open the door for Cal State San Bernardino and Cal State San Marcos to move ahead.
If Cal State Monterey Bay loses, Cal State San Bernardino would take second with a victory at Cal State East Bay. Cal State San Marcos would claim second if it beats CPP and CSUSB does not win.
The Otters would retain second with a loss if neither Cal State San Bernardino nor Cal State San Marcos wins. They would fall to third if exactly one wins and fourth if both win.
Cal State San Bernardino has secured a home match
Cal State San Bernardino visits East Bay assured of finishing between second and fourth.
A victory would give the Coyotes 25 points in 12 matches, good for second if Cal State Monterey Bay loses and third otherwise.
With a draw, Cal State San Bernardino would finish fourth if Cal State San Marcos wins and third if the Cougars draw or lose.
The PPM calculation creates a narrow distinction between Cal State San Bernardino and Cal Poly Pomona. A Coyotes draw would produce 23 points in 12 matches, or approximately 1.917 PPM. That would keep them ahead of a victorious CPP team finishing with 21 points in 11 matches, or approximately 1.909 PPM.
If CSUSB loses, it would finish third if Cal State San Marcos and Cal Poly Pomona draw, and fourth if either team wins.
Cal State San Marcos and Cal Poly Pomona meet for the remaining home match
Cal State San Marcos hosts Cal Poly Pomona with the final available first-round home match at stake.
A Cal State San Marcos victory or draw guarantees the Cougars a top-four finish. A win could lift them as high as second if Cal State Monterey Bay loses and Cal State San Bernardino does not win.
The Cougars would finish fourth with a victory if Cal State Monterey Bay earns at least a draw and Cal State San Bernardino wins. In all other combinations, a Cal State San Marcos victory would produce a third-place finish.
Pomona must win to host. A Broncos victory would secure the No. 3 seed if San Bernardino loses and the No. 4 seed otherwise, while sending San Marcos to fifth.
A draw would leave CSUSM fourth and CPP fifth. If Pomona loses, the Broncos would finish fifth unless Menlo wins, which would push them to sixth.
UC Merced waits for its assignment
UC Merced has completed its conference schedule at 6-6, finishing with 18 points in 12 matches and a 1.500 PPM average.
The Bobcats will finish seventh if Menlo wins and sixth if the Oaks draw or lose. Merced’s head-to-head victories over Menlo and Cal State Dominguez Hills protect its position in the relevant ties.
Cal State LA closes with an unbeaten season in reach
Cal State LA visits Cal State Dominguez Hills having already secured the championship and No. 1 seed. The Golden Eagles enter the finale unbeaten at 14-0-2 overall and 9-0-2 in conference play.
Their top seed carries the tournament’s only first-round bye. Seeds 2, 3 and 4 will host seeds 7, 6 and 5, respectively, on Sunday, Nov. 1.
The three winners will join LA at Cal Poly Pomona’s Kellogg Stadium for the semifinals Friday, Nov. 6, followed by the championship Sunday, Nov. 8.
Thursday’s remaining matches feature Stanislaus State at Fresno Pacific and Chico State at Cal Poly Humboldt. All four teams, along with Cal State East Bay, have been eliminated from tournament contention.